Tonight I had the distinct pleasure of speaking with Andrew Field of APF Records. APF is a UK independent label dealing with the more heavy side of music, specifically Stoner/Doom metal, with a little Thrash and Grindcore thrown in for good measure.

In addition to discussing some of the bands that reside on APF Records, Andrew and I speak about the mechanics of running a small independent label in the UK, as well as nerding out over certain mastering and production techniques!

Do yourself a favour and head over to https://apfrecords.co.uk/ to find out more. Or even quicker - head to https://apfrecords.bandcamp.com/album/volume-8 to here a compilation of APF artists recordings from 2020.

In October I was joined by author, A&R exec and music nerd extraordinaire Howie Abrams. Howie was Director of A&R and Product Management at Roadrunner for the best part of 5 years in the early-mid 90's.

We cover all sorts in this chat, from Type O Negative, to most accessible hardcore bands, and even football (UK). Howie is an exceptionally articulate and smart guy, and I'm super privileged to have had the opportunity to chat with him.

See Howie's book publishing company, Lesser Gods, here - https://www.facebook.com/lessergodsbooks/

Also, buy Howie's books here - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Howie-Abrams/e/B00CGMRWCE

In this episode I speak with Gary Levermore of Third Mind Records. Third Mind was a UK Electronic/Industrial label that pushed some of the staple artists of the genres, such as Front Line Assembly, In the Nursery and Controlled Bleeding.

Gary tells the story of how Third Mind partnered up with Roadrunner Records in the early 90's, in that somewhat confusing time in the narrative when the label started to tread the waters, away from Thrash/Death metal.

This conversation was captured over 2 sessions, so there's a fade out followed by a fade in, about an hour in - that's just to create a break between the sessions.

In this episode, I speak with Andy Saunders. Andy headed up the alt-rock arm of Roadrunner (Emergo) in the UK from 1989-1992 before moving on to Creation Records then forming his own company in 2000.

Andy and I discuss some of the challenges of working under the Roadrunner model as he attempted to expand the label's alt-rock roster in the early 90's. There's some great insight as to how the business operated between its respective satellite offices, which were situated around the globe at this point.

Andy also makes some cracking recommendations for those looking for new music, towards the end of the episode.

Check out Velocity Communications here - https://www.velocitypr.co.uk/

Raw is out fellwalking or something today, so Jim's Friend Tom stepped in for the feature section - in which we discuss Magic the Gathering, and the Illuminati of Consumer Expectation. Spiderman is the paperweight holding all this barely-releasable tinfoil together.

Additionally Jim gets audibly upset that Dave Grohl turned up to work on his bi-annual 'wholesome content' cycle, and a bunch of companies sidestepping the daunting task of telling the world that there won't be any gigs until 2022, and artists don't deserve a dime.

In this episode I speak with guitarist Garry Pepperd of NWOBHM legends Jaguar. Jaguar had only one record with Roadrunner, This Time, released in 1984.

Garry tells me the story of Jaguar and their relationship with Roadrunner Records, ensuing activities including the resurrection of Neat Records in the late 90's, as well as reflecting on the metal scene in general.

I'm very grateful to Garry for offering his time, and would like to direct everyone to their YouTube channel - as Garry describes, this has been cultivated as the centralised hub for all things Jaguar - https://www.youtube.com/user/jaguarnwobhm

This entry into the History of Roadrunner Records [HORR (I'm sticking with it)] is with Kyle Thomas of Exhorder and Floodgate. Kyle is an example of the Roadrunner 'Double Dip' meaning he was signed to the label with two acts - an incredibly rare occurrence.

Kyle has three albums on Roadrunner Records, Exhorder's Slaughter in the Vatican and The Law, and Floodgate's Penalty. This conversation is actually a pretty comprehensive guide to the first decade of Kyle's career in the metal industry.

Check out the new Exhorder album, Mourn the Southern Skies here (possibly the ballsiest album of 2019) - https://exhorder.bandcamp.com/album/mourn-the-southern-skies

Also... check out Kyle's album with Alabama Thunderpussy, Open Fire, here (it's an underrated gem) - https://alabamathunderpussyband.bandcamp.com/album/open-fire

Another one for the History of Roadrunner Records series - this episode I chat with Steev Ricardo! Steev was pivotal for creating the Roadrunner you know and love today, in that he opened the first US office for the label in 1986, along with Holly Lane.

We talk about Steev's hectic tenure with the label, The Great Kat, and the Unsung Hero (Holly Lane).

Check out Steev's podcast, Blowin' Smoke with Twisted Rico here - https://open.spotify.com/show/1yqrttd2p3xQA4MfDcijPG?si=jxDPsG12S622DXwMBnZZ5w

This week I'm joined by Defiance's Mike Kaufmann. Defiance had 3 LP's with Roadrunner Records and are generally revered as one of the key progressive-thrash bands to emerge from the Bay Area.

Mike was super accommodating with his time, and we discussed some of the finer details of working with a label like Roadrunner in the late 80's/early 90's - including producer preferences, competing scenes/sounds, and embracing the early 90's rock upheaval.

Listen to Defiance here - https://candlelightrecordsuk.bandcamp...

Listen to Mike's other project, Monster God, here - https://monstergod1.bandcamp.com/

This week there was barely any proper news, just mostly people popping their heads out the woodwork to endorse something or other - so we generally focused on the sub-par interesting news items this week.

Having said that we've got a new logo drawn by the extremely awesome 'terbangtinggi' on fiverr - which makes us feel legit.

Raw also suggests that the longer a band name is - the worse that band is...